Shreyas Iyer for India (Source:@VikashJ13660845/X.com)
Shreyas Iyer's exclusion from the Asia Cup 2025 squad is a hot topic of discussion across the cricketing universe. Almost everyone has backed Shreyas Iyer and called his non-selection a bit unfair.
AB De Villiers Tries To Dissects Shreyas Iyer's Exclusion From Asia Cup Squad
Now, AB de Villiers, one of the greatest cricketers the world has ever seen, has also opened up on Shreyas Iyer's exclusion. On his YouTube Channel, ABD mentioned that when he was captain, he would always look for a player who could add a bit extra in 50-50 situations between two cricketers.
He used examples like what the player brings to the dressing room, does he inspire cricketers around him or drag people down around him and added that it is probably something that could be the reason of ignoring Shreyas Iyer.
“Thinking about when I was captaining, if there is a 50-50 call between two players, I would always lean towards the guy that offers more from a team perspective off the field. When it’s 50-50 on the field, you have to start looking at other areas like ‘Does he add value in the team room, does he have a smile on his face, does he uplift some of the other players around him?’. Or is he sort of dragging energy from the squad?“Maybe it’s got something to do with that, AB de Villiers said on his YouTube channel.
The former South African skipper then clarified that he is just making a guess because it is weird that a player of the calibre of Shreyas Iyer is not in the team. He added that Shreyas has an added advantage of his leadership and added that maybe the management thought that there are too many leaders in India's squad.
He added that maybe the real season of Shreyas Iyer's exclusion will come out one day, clearly signalling that there is more than just cricket skills to the whole story.
"I am just taking a complete guess because it is weird that a quality player like him not making the starting squad for Team India, especially with the leadership qualities he is bringing. Maybe it’ll be too much of a clash with him there and maybe there are too many leaders and too many captains. Maybe the truth will come out one day and we’ll know why Shreyas is struggling to get into Team India".
AB de Villiers Hints At Off-Field Issues For Shreyas Iyer's Non-Selection
The ex-RCB superstar also stated that no one even knows what is going on behind closed doors. He added that there must be some off-field issues that have contributed to him not getting favoured by the management. ABD, though, made it clear that Shreyas Iyer would be in his team more often than not.
“Who knows what is going on behind closed doors. Maybe not even Shreyas knows. There might be a few things that have taken place over the years that’s determined why he is not the flavor of the month this tournament. I am not sure what the reason is because he will be in my team more often than not.”
Thus, AB de Villiers has indicated that Shreyas Iyer's continuous exclusion from the Indian team is a result of some off-field issues and the preference of people in power over what Ajit Agarkar said in his press conference.
 (1).jpg?type=mq "Players who must perform")
